How families of the Righteous survive in war-torn Kyiv

By Marharyta Ormotsadze

Ukrainian Jewish Encounter reports on the extreme conditions in which the families of the Righteous Among the Nations are forced to survive in the capital of Ukraine

One of the largest cities in Europe, Kyiv had an official population of about three million before the war. The city has been operating in extreme conditions for three and a half years now. Russian troops bombard the city with cruise and ballistic missiles and kamikaze drones. The shelling destroyed the electricity infrastructure, causing repeated blackouts.

Russian missiles hit civilian houses. On 8 July, the world shuddered at the shelling of the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. Several other objects were destroyed in Ukraine's capital the same day, for example, part of a residential building near my apartment.

In the summer of 2024, constant shelling was compounded by heat and unpredictable long-term power outages. These increased from 3-4 to 8 hours daily, making planning even the simplest chores impossible.

With the beginning of the war, hundreds of thousands of refugees from Russia-occupied territories and near-front zones fled to Kyiv. The availability of jobs in Ukraine's capital is a major factor attracting people.

More than ten families of the Righteous Among the Nations continue to live in Kyiv. Recognized by Yad Vashem and invited to move to the West multiple times, they still refused to leave the Ukrainian capital.

I am writing this text on 22 July, the birthday of Janusz Korczak. He is known worldwide for going through a concentration camp with his students from Polish orphanages and entering the gas chamber with them. Our Righteous Among the Nations also saved innocent Jewish souls, risking their own lives during the Shoah.

We told UJE readers about life in Kyiv amid the war in the fall of 2022. At the time, the Righteous Vasyl Nazarenko, Lidia Savchuk, Nina Bogorad, Valentina Sokolova (Poloz), and Oksana Antipchuk (née Deineko) lived there. Since then, Savchuk and her daughter have moved to the EU as refugees. Bogorad and Sokolova have passed away, but they continue to live in people's memory.

In May 2024, Ukraine officially marked, for the third time, the Day of Remembrance of Ukrainians who rescued Jews during World War II. Solemn events were held throughout Ukraine to remember and honor the families of the Righteous.

"President Volodymyr Zelensky was with the Righteous Among the Nations and their children at the ceremony to commemorate Babyn Yar victims," says Roza Tapanova, director of the Babyn Yar National Historical and Memorial Reserve. Children and relatives of all families of the Righteous in Kyiv were invited to the meeting with the president.

A photo exhibition of the artist Denys Kopylov featuring portraits of the Righteous and their children was mounted on the territory of Babyn Yar with the support of the "Word of the Righteous" project. The exhibition opened in May 2024 and closed at the end of July.

The Babyn Yar National Historical and Memorial Reserve also opened a new large exposition featuring stories of the Righteous from all over Ukraine. "Nowadays, brief stories about the Righteous in the alley inspire young people and give them strength in this war," says Tapanova.

What is happening in Kyiv
Every month, the Russian army carries out attacks on unarmed civilian Kyivites, targeting residential areas, houses, institutes, hospitals, etc., and using weapons of mass destruction. Julia Goldenberg, the founder of the 2U Charitable Foundation, says that, like all Kyivites, the families of the Righteous in Kyiv suffer from constant terrorist attacks. "Due to missile attacks on Ukraine's infrastructure, the entire system of power grids has been critically damaged, and there are repeated power outages in Kyiv and throughout Ukraine. For older people, being left without electricity is simply a horror. In many high rises, the cookstoves are electric, so it's impossible to cook or even warm up tea during blackouts," Goldenberg explains.

The Righteous Vasyl Nazarenko is 94 years old. UJE recently published an interview with him. He comes from a Ukrainian family in Vinnytsia who rescued Jews. In 1941, Moisei and Lukeria Nazarenko, with their children Yefrosynia, Nadiia, and Vasyl sheltered Aniuta (Eti) Jadushliver and her daughter Beti. The families did not know each other before the war, and the Nazarenkos risked their all to save two Jewish women who were strangers to them. Yad Vashem awarded the Righteous Among the Nations title to the Nazarenko family on 2 January 1995.

Vasyl Nazarenko takes care of his wife, Lida, whose parents also sheltered Jews during the war but did not submit documents to Yad Vashem. Their children live outside the city and visit them every week.

"Electricity is turned off from time to time. It was turned off this morning and put back on about an hour ago (i.e., at 7 pm). We don't have the strength to move to my daughter's private house because my wife, Lydia, can only walk at home. I am asking G-d to end the war," Nazarenko says.

The Righteous Oksana Deineko lives with her family. Her grandson works in a hospital, saving the lives of wounded soldiers. She is not aware of the Ukrainian-Russian war that rages on outside, as her children don't tell her to avoid causing worries. Their family is pleading for help with the purchase of an energy storage device.

Deineko's family has sent out an appeal for help purchasing an energy storage device costing upwards of USD 1,000. Perhaps there are those among the readers who would be willing to support this heroic family.

Sources of support for the families of the Righteous
The living Righteous Among the Nations receive regular aid from Israel and Germany and are also supported by the Hesed charitable foundation. From time to time, Jewish communities and other associations invite the Righteous in order to honor them.

However, as soon as a Righteous Among the Nations passes away, the flow of aid stops. Most often, their children are older people with small pensions and also in need of support. Nearly 60 families of the widows, children, and grandchildren of the Righteous are supported by the "Word of the Righteous" volunteer initiative. More than ten such families live in Kyiv, including the children and grandchildren of the Righteous Valentina Sokolova (Poloz), Liudmyla Zavorotnia, Aleksey and Tatiana Glagolevs, the Bilostotsky family, Sofia Yarova, Kateryna Kobets, Kateryna Makarevych, Oleksandra Shulezhko, Nina Gudkova, Aleksandra Yegorycheva, Vasyl Mykhaylovskiy, Olena Malova (Zavadska), and others.

They are all affected by the shelling and power outages. Nearly all of their grandchildren have jobs and do a lot to help Ukraine's Armed Forces and those in need. At the same time, the children of the Righteous are people of a respectable age, often sick and in need of constant medical treatment. In May 2024 alone, the "Word of the Righteous" project helped the children of the Righteous pay for three surgeries.

The relatives of the Righteous often have very small pensions and need support. Ukrainian journalists, businessmen, and bankers help them through the "Word of the Righteous" initiative. Some notable figures include Roza Tapanova, Roman Shpek, Kyrylo Shevchenko, Hennadii and Yevheniia Khelemskys, Denys Chernyshov, Alla Komisarenko, Mykhailo Komisaruk, and Rostyslav Diuk. Such well-known personalities as the journalist Vitaly Portnikov and Vice-President of the World Jewish Congress Joseph Zissels have also contributed.

Julia Goldenberg's 2U foundation also provides constant support to the families of the Righteous. Launched in August 2013, it helps more than 3,000 people a month, including the Righteous Among the Nations, the Righteous of Ukraine, and the Righteous of Babyn Yar. Other beneficiaries include internally displaced persons (IDPs), combatants, older adults, people with special needs, large families, as well as state medical institutions and schools.

"We provide food products, household chemicals, medicines, medical equipment, diapers for children and adults, products for energy independence, and winter assistance. We make partial home repairs and operate a point of invincibility [a center providing heat, water, electricity, etc. — Transl.]. Unfortunately, the number of people in need is growing, so any donations are welcome," says Goldenberg.

The Juice Charitable Foundation, supporting the Righteous Among the Nations since 2012, has also joined the cause. "Supporting and helping the Righteous Among the Nations allows us to pay tribute to their heroism, teach others to preserve their legacy, and inspire action against injustice. This is our way of ensuring that their outstanding acts of courage will never be forgotten," says Juice co-founder Liliya Vendrova. "Now, when they are in Ukraine during the war, their stories are even more symbolic, reminding us of the importance of humanity and compassion in the most difficult moments. Now more than ever, our support is important to these people: providing them with medicines and food products and simply staying in touch with them gives them a sense of security and comfort. Our help is not only recognition of their merits but also a concrete contribution to their well-being today," she adds.

The Juice Foundation provides aid to some 60 people, mostly older adults, children with disabilities, IDPs, and people living close to the war zone. "We provide monthly assistance to the Righteous and their families and regularly contact them to understand their needs. We were struck by how they helped and sheltered others — immediately, without a second thought — even though it could cost them and their loved ones their lives," Vendrova explains.

Since 2022, the Remember Us and Be the Light organizations and Jewish and Christian communities have joined the cause of helping the Righteous.

In difficult times, most families of the Righteous Among the Nations remain in their city. "There are constant reports of possible shelling; air raid sirens go off, but the city is alive. People in Kyiv value their jobs very much. Children go to schools and kindergartens, and I see how children are taken to bomb shelters during shelling," says Maria Glagoleva, daughter of the Righteous Aleksey and Tatiana Glagolevs. Last year, one of the streets in Kyiv's Shevchenkivsky district was named in honor of her family, who did many good deeds for the city and its residents.

Eduard Hryhurko, aged 88, is the son of the Righteous Lyudmyla Zavorotnia, who saved her Jewish friend Isaac Brodsky from death, acting together with her neighbors. In 1941, they lived on Babyn Yar Street in Kyiv and saw everything that happened at the scene of the tragedy — the terrible executions of Kyiv's peaceful civilian Jewish population. Zavorotnia's testimony was crucial evidence in court, particularly during the Nuremberg Trials.

"Our house was located 300 meters from the fence of Babyn Yar and the concentration camp. We saw guard towers, barbed wire, shepherd dogs, and barracks and heard shots and people screaming," Eduard explains.

"My mother, Righteous Among the Nations, passed away at 92. She sat on a bench near the house and said she was going in to watch TV. That's how they found her the next morning, with the remote control in her hand. In any situation, you must be yourself, have a conscience, and give help where help is needed," Eduard says.

Sofia Melnychuk, the daughter of the Righteous Kateryna Melnychuk, who saved the Jewish girl Fanya Pikman, also remains in Ukraine's capital.

"I tell young people to take heart, hold on, defend the Motherland, and make donations. I have also given money to the Armed Forces through the church. I am an elderly woman and cannot go to the front myself, but I have donated money through the church. What I gave is a drop, but everything has to be calculated: the utilities and medications. I think we should donate money to support the Armed Forces every month," Sofia Melnychuk urges.

Marharyta Ormotsadze
Marharyta Ormotsadze is a co-founder/producer of the Word of the Righteous project, which tells about the valor of Ukrainians who saved Jews throughout Ukraine during the Holocaust.